Detroit River Hawk Watch Brownstown, Michigan, USA Daily Raptor Counts: Sep 20, 2024 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Species Day's Count Month Total Season Total ------------------ ----------- -------------- -------------- Black Vulture 0 0 0 Turkey Vulture 6 170 170 Osprey 0 8 8 Bald Eagle 0 21 21 Northern Harrier 17 108 108 Sharp-shinned Hawk 298 1257 1257 Cooper's Hawk 3 12 12 American Goshawk 0 0 0 Red-shouldered Hawk 0 0 0 Broad-winged Hawk 1 4121 4121 Swainson's Hawk 0 0 0 Red-tailed Hawk 0 33 33 Rough-legged Hawk 0 0 0 Golden Eagle 0 0 0 American Kestrel 15 176 176 Merlin 0 7 7 Peregrine Falcon 0 3 3 Unknown Accipiter 0 4 4 Unknown Buteo 3 11 11 Unknown Falcon 2 4 4 Unknown Eagle 0 0 0 Unknown Raptor 2 16 16 Total: 347 5951 5951 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Observation start time: 08:00:00 Observation end time: 15:00:00 Total observation time: 7 hours Official Counter: Michael Patrikeev Observers: Bill and Michelle Peregord, Don Sherwood, Jo Patterson, Rosemary Brady Visitors: We welcome visitors to our site by the boat launch in Lake Erie MetroPark. We are willing to spread the gospel with pamphlets and information cards, along with tips on IDing the raptors, and photography tips for those behind the cameras. Let us share our enthusiasm for this miracle of nature with you. Weather: Sunny ca. 09:00 AM, and then clouds rolled in from the west, forming up to 100% cover. Winds from the South-East and South-South-East at 2.5 miles/hr (2-4 km/hr) or less. Although the weather forecast predicted record-breaking temperatures for today, it was not felt at the count site; the air temperature reached 77 F (25C) in the last hour of the count. It was generally warmer earlier in the week. Thunder was heard in the distance and few drops of rain fell ca. 4 PM (EDT). However, the storm passed south of Lake Erie Metro Park. Raptor Observations: Today's flight was dominated by Sharp-shinned Hawks, seen at a rate of ca. 50/hour; nearly 300 were counted in total. No show for the Broad-winged Hawks (only one bird was seen earlier in the day). We also counted seventeen Northern Harriers and fifteen American Kestrels. Non-raptor Observations: Large flocks of Blue Jays passed overhead, one after one, mainly in between 9:00 AM and 12 PM. We counted at least 2,040 of them. No other noteworthy birds were seen by us today. Predictions: The Weather Network calls for another hot and sunny day with westerly winds and temperature rising to the lowers 80s F. We expect to see good numbers of Sharp-shinned Hawks crossing from Canada, and are hoping for at least some Broad-winged Hawks, although their appearance seems hard to predict. It's worth noting that the neighboring Holiday Beach Hawk Count also reports much lower than usual numbers of the Broad-wings. ======================================================================== Report submitted by Erika Van Kirk (erika_vankirk@fws.gov) Detroit River Hawk Watch information may be found at: http://www.detroitriverhawkwatch.org More site information at hawkcount.org: https://hawkcount.org/siteinfo.php?rsite=285